CROYDON, Pa. – The 17th-ranked Fairleigh Dickinson women's bowling team defeated two ranked opponents and three teams overall in five Baker total pin fall matches to start the Northeast Invitational on Friday.
The Knights (23-19) battled from behind to topple fifth-ranked Vanderbilt and also picked up victories against no. 20 Lincoln Memorial and New Jersey City. FDU finished the first day of the three-day tournament with a total pin fall of 4,527 pins, averaging 181.1 pins per game. The Knights sit in 13th place in a crowded 26-team field.
Sophomores
Jenna Henderson,
Amanda Chrzanowski and
Aimee Sherman along with freshman
Cameron Spring started all five matches for FDU. Seniors
Brianna MacLeod (three matches) and
Samantha Hart (two matches) split starts to fill out the lineup for the Knights in their first tournament back in action in over a month.
"After the long winter break, we struggled out of the blocks today," head coach
Mike LoPresti said. "But we gradually improved and finished with our strongest match, giving us an overall winning day. It should give us some momentum leading into tomorrow's matches, and we'll need it because we have quite a bit of ground to make up in the total pin fall standings."
FDU opened the second half of its season against eighth-ranked Stephen F. Austin, suffering a 964-855 defeat to the defending NCAA national champions. The Lumberjacks scored higher than the Knights in each of the first three games and the final game to build a lead that FDU could not overcome.
The Knights rebounded, however, after falling behind by 44 pins after two games against no. 5 Vanderbilt. FDU won the next game by 32 pins to cut into the lead before the Commodores gained back six pins in the fourth stanza. The Knights then regrouped and finished strong with a 61-pin advantage, 195-134, in the final game to finish the comeback victory, their second in two matches against Vanderbilt this season.
FDU carried the momentum into its next match against New Jersey City, scoring higher in all five games on the way to a 933-668 win. The Knights started with 394 pins in the first two games and finished strong with a 206 to help earn the second straight win of the day.
A close battle with Tusculum then followed, but the Knights fell short in a 903-886 defeat. FDU made up a first-game deficit with a 15-pin advantage (196-181) in the second frame to go up by six pins. The Pioneers, however, outscored the Knights by 74 pins in the third game to build up another lead, and despite a strong 211-158 effort in the fourth game, the Knights could not make up more ground in the fifth game.
The Knights then ended their day with their best scoring output in a 982-917 victory over no. 20 Lincoln Memorial. FDU benefited from two huge games to start, rolling a 203 and a 194 to build a 72-pin lead, before nearly matching LMU pin-for-pin over the final three stanzas to score enough for the win.
FDU goes up against three more ranked opponents on Saturday, including the top-two teams in the country in McKendree and Sam Houston State. The Knights play a total of five traditional matches beginning with a matchup with Medaille at 9:30 a.m.
